A new program at the Salvation Army in Macomb can help parents map out a path for a better future with their children.

Focusing on achieving goals, Pathway of Hope is a program that adapts to individual parents’ needs to help them acquire amenities that they need to better their family’s lives, according to regional caseworker Meghan Kennedy, who visited the Macomb corps on Tuesday.

“The idea is that this isn’t just another hand out, but a hand up,” Kennedy said. “We’re really trying to change the mindset from, ‘What kind of assistance can I get today that will help me today, but not tomorrow?,’ to getting people to think about, ‘What can we do to plan for the future.’”

Kennedy stresses that this doesn’t mean that the Salvation Army will not offer families assistance on a short-term basis, but rather this is to help with goals — for instance, a parent wants to acquire a new job, or they’d like to finish school, or they want to acquire a driver’s license.

Those at 18 years of age with at least one child are eligible to participate. Kennedy said that by setting up an appointment by calling or walking in that parents can begin developing a plan.

Each Tuesday Kennedy will meet with the parents to help map out short-term goals that can be achieved toward longer-term goals. Progress is monitored and at three, six, nine, and 12 month markers the goals will be reviewed and discussed.

The program will help parents network with the entities they need to help them achieve their goals and strengthen their future with their families. Kennedy said that this is not charity, parents will have to do the work to meet their goals, but merely an assistance program to provide opportunities people might not otherwise have.

This will be the first time that the program will come to Macomb and Kennedy asks that parents who think they will benefit come forward to begin achieving their goals.

“Ideally each family will have four goals,” Kennedy said. “Some may have three. At the end of the year we hope that they’ve met at least two of those goals. After that year, if they want to keep going we can keep going.”

Meeting are individually tailored and confidential, and parents have the ability to leave the program at any time.

For more information, contact the Salvation Army office at 309-837-4824.

Reach Nick Draper via email at ndraper@McDonoughVoice.com, or follow him on Twitter @nick_draper.